Beautifully Pretty DIY Barn Wedding

We’re finishing out the week in utter prettiness with Steven and Rebeckah’s beautiful barn wedding.

You guys know we’re rather partial to a barn bash around here, and their day was the ultimate rustic dream.

A gorgeous couple, a stylish suit and dress, a flower crown (we could have sworn was real!) and some utterly gorgeous DIY features that we know brides everywhere are going to want to borrow!

(Seriously, just wait for that butterfly hanging, it’s one of the most stunning DIY wedding projects ever!)

Their butterfly-laden day was captured by the wonderful Layne of Jono & Laynie Photo & Film, who built up a friendship with the camera shy pair from their engagement session to their wedding day.

Capturing their romantic church ceremony, intimate moments in a significant location, and all the pretty details of their reception in a neighbour’s barn, we won’t delay you any further because these pictures are simply too gorgeous to keep you waiting!

Wedding Day Snapshot

Our Wedding in Three Words

Pretty, natural, easy-breezy.

Our Wedding

Right from the beginning of our engagement, I said I didn’t want to have a themed wedding.

I just wanted to have everything I liked, and avoid all things matchy-matchy.

My overall vision was to have a wedding that was pretty, bright, and seemingly easy-breezy, bus also classic and timeless. My colour palette was mainly pinks, blushes, creams, and white.

The Attire

I ended up with a dress that was not my original vision at all (it was actually my dad’s pick at the bridal store!)

The bodice of the dress has flowers and vines embroidered onto it with beading to give it a little bit of sparkle, and since the dress is made of chiffon, the skirt is incredibly light and float-y. I loved it. I had the neckline changed into a sweetheart style to give it a more romantic look.

The earrings were my something old from my grandmother; she actually wore them to my mom’s wedding, so it was a nice way to incorporate the generations.

My shoes and anklets were both treasures I purchased during a recent trip to India. I love India, so I wanted to have it included in my day as well. I had the veil made in Toronto at alittle boutique, and then my mom and gram sewed the lace onto the edges.

I asked my girls to each choose a floor-length gown in a blush tone. I never saw all the bridesmaids dresses together until the day of the wedding, but the colours couldn’t have turned out more perfectly! They all wore nude shoes (they chose whatever they were comfortable in) and no jewelry other than small earrings.

The flower girls wore dresses from H&M. I made their sashes. I dressed the ring bearer to match the boys.

The Flowers

All my flowers were fake!

I have always had a fiery hatred for artificial flowers, but since we were on a tight budget, I took the advice of my wise aunt who advised that artificial flowers were more cost-efficient.

Honestly, no one noticed, and when I tell people now, they can’t believe they weren’t real.

The other benefit of having artificial flowers was that I could make all the bouquets and arrangements well in advance. I added a bit of real baby’s breath to my headpiece and the bouquets to make them look a little more legit.

I had a little heart pinned onto my bouquet that my gram gave to me on my first day of kindergarten…I had saved it since that day.

The flowers on the tables and at the front of the church were real however; they were hydrangea stalks that my mom collected from neighbors’ gardens the day before.

The Ceremony

I walked down the aisle with my dad to “You Are my Sunshine”, which a friend played on the piano. My dad used to sing it to me as a little girl, so it was a special touch.

We had friends read Romans 12:6-16, as well as Ephesians 5:25-30, which Steven and I felt represented our new marriage and walks with the Lord.

Favourite Moments

Our ceremony was perfect to me.

My three (beautiful and awesome) sisters sang and played the violin to “Be Thou My Vision” while Steven and I took communion together. Those few minutes were so amazing.

We asked our guests to exit the church quickly after the ceremony, and Steven and I met them outside to release butterflies, and then run through the rice-throw; that was really memorable.

My little cousins had been raising caterpillars into monarch butterflies for the occasion, but the cocoons didn’t hatch in time… so they captured little white butterflies that kind of looked like moths instead.

The Photography

Layne is an amazing photographer and person in general. When I first started chatting to her online, I felt like I was emailing an old friend, or my long lost soul-mate!

She took our engagement pictures for us, and captured them in just the way I described to her. (Steven and I were actually really worried before-hand that the shoot would be awkward, because neither of us is incredibly photogenic, but she was so good that we couldn’t believe how much fun we had.)

She is super organized and sweet, and has tons of great ideas.

She photographed our wedding day perfectly, and handled all our chaotic family pictures like a real pro (seriously, I was SO grateful for this girl!)

The Bridge

Whenever I visited home, Steven and I would go to my favourite spot; an old bridge near my house that overlooks a beautiful river & mill. We would dance under the stars and the fireflies; it is always so romantic and peaceful.

He proposed at that bridge too.

The Decor & Details

Since the barn we had our reception in was so beautiful, I didn’t want to over-decorate and take away from its character.

I made all the table numbers myself, which included floral paper, glittering numbers, and a picture of Steven and I on the back.

I also made a hanging floral arrangement for above the head-table that had monarch butterflies dangling from it (we had monarchs hanging in various locations around the barn too). I cut the butterflies all out by hand with a friend… they were a lot of work, but they were my favourite detail.

We had a chandelier in the centre of the dance floor (which I borrowed from my little sisters’ bedroom), and I used a lot of photos from our growing-up years for guests to enjoy and reminisce over.

We had sparklers at each place setting as favours with a little thank-you note attached. We didn’t decorate the church, either than a few vases of flowers at the front.

The Refreshments

We had a buffet dinner, which included chicken and beef, and all the fixings. People rave about the dinner still…Steven and I have to take their word that it was good, because neither of us had time to eat!

Our cake was made by my childhood friend, and bridesmaid. I asked for something simple and pretty, and she did an amazing job.

Advice for Other Couple

We opted to skip the traditional receiving-line, to save on time. Instead we visited each table during dinner and handed out candy…it was a huge hit, and we had more time to spend with guests individually.

Also, love your day.

Something will definitely go wrong (our DJ never showed up), but in the end, it just makes the wedding-day story more memorable.

My last piece of advice is to MAKE SURE you have enough gas in your going-away vehicle, to get wherever you are going. We did not. We had to turn around and get my dad to siphon gas out of his tractor!

Just beautiful. Um, also, how can Rebeckah say her and Steven were worried about their pictures – they must be one of the most photogenic couples ever! And I love Rebeckah’s advice on loving your day – I imagine most couples would be a lot more dramatic about a no-show DJ!

Thanks so much to Jono & Laynie Photo & Film and of course the wonderful Steven and Rebeckah for sharing their beautiful day with us.